Shaler parks study recommends $17 million community center in Kiwanis Park

A study of Shaler’s parks has recommended construction of a smaller community center in Kiwanis Park that would cost about $17 million.

The plan, prepared by OHM Advisors, is expected to guide future parks and recreation investment and operations in the township for the next decade.

In addition to studying the feasibility of a recreation center in Kiwanis Park, it recommend several upgrades, improvements and additions to Kiwanis and the township’s 11 other parks while also recommending the hiring of a full-time parks and recreation director and dedicated staff.

Chris Riggert, a principal with OHM Advisors, presented the master plan during a public meeting on Monday, Nov. 17. The report will be finalized by the end of the year and presented to Shaler commissioners.

The proposed community center would be built on the western side of Kiwanis Park, where Jeffery Primary School had been. The building, across Wetzel Road from the township building, was demolished after Shaler Area School District closed it in 2018 and the township acquired it in 2021.

According to Riggert, recreation centers of 38,000 square feet and 28,000 square feet were considered before settling on a size of 20,000 square feet. The larger buildings were deemed to not be feasible because of issues such as the staffing they would require and that they could never be fully utilized because of conflicts with other things in the park.

The two-level community center proposed would be built into the hillside. It would have a multipurpose meeting room, covered outdoor meeting space and an office on its upper level and a multi-athletic center and walking track on its lower level.

Its construction would require removing one baseball field.

The annual cost of operating the community center is projected to range from about $261,000 in its first year to nearly $330,000 in the fifth year. Revenue could come from passes and daily admissions, programs and events, reservations and rentals, and sponsorships.

The township would have to borrow money to pay for the center’s construction, township Manager Judy Kording said.

“We do not have the funds to front a $17 million construction,” she said. “It would have to be a bond issue.”

Borrowing $19.5 million would cost Shaler $1 million per year for 20 years, Kording said. That amount is more than the township’s general fund budget, which is about $17 million.

Operating and maintenance costs would be on top of that, she said. That would total an annual commitment of $1.7 million, which Kording said is what 1 mill of property tax generates in Shaler.

For a property at Shaler’s $132,200 median value, increasing the township’s tax rate by 1 mill to 4.49 mills would increase the annual township property tax bill by about $133, from $461 to $594.

The township’s proposed 2026 budget has no tax increase. The tax rate has not been increased since 2020.

The $17 million project cost, which includes fees and costs in addition to construction cost, is subject to change, Riggert said. Tariffs and a labor shortage also could push it higher, he said.

Kording noted the township’s new bathhouse at Crawford Pool in Kiwanis Park increased from $1.5 million to $2.5 million. The cost does not include any HVAC systems, which she said would have added another $500,000.

“It was needed. It was necessary,” Kording said of the bathhouse.

Combining the bathhouse with a community center was found to not be feasible, she said.

Included in the plan is expanding trails and connecting the parks, specifically creating a pedestrian pathway between Shaler North Hills Library and the neighboring Shaler Area Middle School and Kiwanis Park.

However, constructing a sidewalk along Wetzel Road from Mt. Royal Boulevard to the park is opposed by most of the residents who would be impacted through loss of part of their front lawns and being responsible for maintenance costs, Kording said.

Kiwanis Park is considered a challenging site because of its terrain, with only 52% of its 26 acres being buildable. While describing it as a beautiful park with many amenities, Kording said Fall Run is the township’s most-used park.

An improvement project at Fall Run will add parking, restrooms and a pavilion. The plan also calls for exploring connecting Stoneridge Park to the Fall Run Park trail.

OHM Advisors’ full presentation on the parks and recreation master plan is available on the township’s website at shaler.org.